Protest the Hero - Kezia (2006)^{Release ID: 1800}

When making a debut studio album, there are some things you need to think about deciding; the feel for the album, the central themes, and each song's style. Give them all some time so you can let the album grow and glow without forcing the beauty. That's exactly what Protest the Hero did! After playing some Happy Go Lucky punk rock, they decided to brainstorm an album and story to compose that's far different, and that took them 2 years. 2 YEARS!! A long time for a 10-song album! However, that's what makes some albums the best, by taking the longest time. With that and their more progressive sound, Kezia just made part of my top 10 of 2005!! And apparently, many metalcore fans and critics rate it the #1 album of 2005. Well sure, but there are other bands who also made awesome in 2005. Either way, what an accomplishment!

Kezia is not just an album but also a story, which is what concept albums are, right? It has everything you need for a story; interesting characters, plot twists, and poetic language. There are 3 parts of the story, and each part is in the perspective of a different character with their view in the story. You'll see what those characters are as the review moves along. We barely know anything about those characters when we start the story, but as the twisted tale goes on, we learn much more about them song after song. I'll describe the song structures, how good they are, and the story analysis, all in this review. (SPOILERS COMING!!)

Act I: The Prison Priest - "No Stars Over Bethlehem" starts with a piano intro, the background noises begin to rise louder. Then the song starts right away! You get launched into an insane song filled with religious views from the priest. The main story has barely even started yet so you don't know what's even going on. Not the best song, but definitely not bad at all. The guitars are pretty epic, and you might very well feel like you're in Bethlehem. Nice tranquility! In "Heretics and Killers", the guitar playing sounds both different and similar to the previous song, and that's kinda a small problem. Despite the differences, the guitars have a similar sound, and as a result, the songs ends up being repetitive. Despite this, the song's still good. Rody Walker really nails the over-the-top singing over the acoustic section with background tranquility. The priest believes that after God has fortified life, God has forsaken him. The priest now feels like an impersonating beggar, leading to the central conflict. Again not the best, but still so good. "Divinity Within" shows the band finally thinking more about the story, and it's already the last song for this act. Once again, it sounds too similar to the other two songs in the act, but it gets made up by the incoming awesomeness. Some earlier said lyrics were repeated more dramatically ("I watch my temple fall to pieces"). Then the song gets slower and more melodic that makes me want to break into emotional tears. So now we know the priest's connection to the main character, Kezia, a young girl who has committed a crime so terrible that she was sentenced to death. The priest has to ask the "Any last words?" question and condemn her to death. He regains his religious plight but he's hesitant against what he has to do. He doesn't feel like has the right to keep or take people's lives. The "final words" question hangs in the balance when the song and act ends. What happens next? We'll have to find out in the next act. Anyway, that's a great fitting closure to the first act!

Act II: The Prison Guard - "Bury The Hatchet" starts the act fast and heavy, and you have a different feeling about this act. Based on the toughness of the guard, the guitars are more aggressive and the lyrics are gruesome. The guard is also the executioner who's responsible for killing prisoners. He's been trained to do his duty without remorse. Simple yet cruel. The heaviest song to attract metalheads! "Nautical" is the shortest and least important song here. It's just a tribute to the band's earlier political punk style. I suppose this was used as more of the angry guard's rants. The guitar work is too average. The worst song but not terrible enough to detract the 5-star rating. "Blindfolds Aside" is a catchy song. The guitar work isn't super impressive but it gets put aside for the amazing vocals soaring into an emotional climax. The solo and the bridge that follows are beautiful. You already know how profound Protest the Hero were thinking when composing. Similar to the first act, it's the third and last song in the act that's has filled with an emotional climax of power. There's even a beautiful acoustic ending with female singing by Jadea Kelly. The song is set in the same place as "Divinity Within"; the execution. After all that unnecessary ranting from the previous track, the guard actually feels some sympathy towards Kezia. So now we're seeing quite a guilt trip. Kezia gives the guard a choice of fates; kill her and feel guilt for the rest of his life or abort the execution and let himself control his life. The execution's about to start, and what does the guard to choose? Again we don't know, so this is it. We're down to one more act, and maybe then the story would be complete. Best track of the second act!

Act III: Kezia - "She Who Mars The Skin Of Gods" begins the story of Kezia herself, and boy is it a sad one! The melancholy is reflected in the usage of the slightly sad but still furious guitar. By the end of this song you would really feel it. The combo of both male and female vocals plus the slow guitar represents the feeling of sympathy for Kezia. It's not a pretty history for her. When she was younger, her mother was killed by possibly Kezia's father. That really sets off the actions later on in the act. Great emotional song! Next track, "Turn Soonest To The Sea" is filled with obscure sexist references, including a reference to Vesta, the Greek Goddess of empowerment. This is my second favorite song here and the longest of the album at over 6 minutes. Everything you ever hope for is thrown all over the place. The great sing-along ending is very catchy and my favorite part of the song. In the story, Kezia has grown up in a world where sexist men dominate. Every women has to live up to ridiculously sexist standards from social obligations to labels. The reason Kezia is in jail and about to be executed is more likely to be because she tried to empower females therefore causing treason against the male reign. The concept is so wrong yet interesting. It's an amazing track worth listening to so many times, but it leads to the last and best of this act. That song is "The Divine Suicide Of K.", the absolute best track here! This song is at the brink of making me cry and wet my pants. It continues the whole "best for last" technique for each act, and this is no exception! The song is so emotional and mind-blowing. Many different parts and placed around in amazing order. The male vocals are teary and the female singing is at its strongest. In the middle of the song, the guitars really float in clouds of emotion. The climatic perfection returns! The overlapping singing/screaming combo is more glorious than you can ever believe. And the female vocals really end the song slow and steady. So now it's really time for the execution. Maybe the ending would finally be clear. Will the priest neglect God? Will the guard free Kezia? Will Kezia accept her fate? The answer is... PSYCH!!! There was no proper ending! You took a journey that just stopped in a bang and a cliffhanger. The finale track, "A Plateful Of Our Dead" is just a separate message that clarifies the point of this album. Good satisfying finale!

Kezia is indeed one of the best albums in the Melodic Metalcore clan challenge and one of the greatest progressive metalcore albums in general. Protest The Hero are some of both the most talented musicians and the most amazing storytellers, greater than most other albums I've heard and stories I've read. I would recommend this album to any music listener and story reader out there. Thank you, Protest the Hero, for this grand-masterpiece. Not to sound like I'm in love with someone, but... I love you, Kezia!

Favorites: "Divinity Within", "Blindfolds Aside", "She Who Mars the Skin of Gods", "Turn Soonest to the Sea", "The Divine Suicide of K."